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California

At the site of Downey police officer’s death, his family weeps

1/16

Maricela Alvarado, sister of suspect Abel Diaz, cries as she walks to her car, insisting the teenager was not responsible for the death ofOfficer Ricardo Galvez. “My brother is innocent. He is not the shooter,” said Alvarado, 24.

  (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
2/16

Laura Sarabia said she came to the Downey memorial for Officer Ricardo Galvez to pay her respects, and show her kids the hero he was.

  (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
3/16

Bell Gardens police Officer Steven Perez salutes as the coroner’s van departs from the scene where Downey police Officer Ricardo Galvez was found shot to death in the driver’s seat of his vehicle in a Downey parking lot.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
4/16

L.A. County Sheriff’s Department personnel salute a coroner’s van bearing the body of slain Downey police Officer Ricardo Galvez as it arrives at the coroner’s office in Los Angeles.

  (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
5/16

Downey Police Department personnel gather at the coroner’s office on Thursday morning, after escorting the body of slain Downey Officer Ricardo Galvez to the facility in downtown Los Angeles.

  (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
6/16

Members of the Downey Police Department form an honor line as the body of slain Officer Ricardo Galvez is moved to the coroner’s van. Galvez was fatally shot in a botched robbery attempt as he sat in his personal vehicle in a Downey city parking lot, authorities said.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
7/16

A Downey police officer is consoled after the body of slain Officer Ricardo Galvez was moved to the coroner’s van Thursday morning.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
8/16

Bell Gardens police Officer R. Barrios hugs a former Marine who served with slain officer Ricardo Galvez.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
9/16

Former Marines who served with slain Officer Ricardo Galvez, as well as police officers and other people form a line as the coroner’s van departs.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
10/16

People line the street as the coroner’s van departs with the body of slain Downey police Officer Ricardo Galvez.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
11/16

A memorial with a portrait of slain Downey police officer Ricardo Galvez is forming in front of the police station.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
12/16

A Downey police officer hugs people arriving to the scene of where Officer Ricardo Galvez was found shot to death in his vehicle in a city parking lot.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
13/16

Police officials examine the area where Downey police Officer Ricardo Galvez was found fatally shot.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
14/16

Downey Police officers embrace at the scene where fellow Officer Ricardo Galvez was found shot to death in the civic center parking lot.

  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
15/16

Police investigate a scene, including this vehicle with the trunk open, off Washington Boulevard in Montebello. Ricardo Galvez, a Downey police officer, was fatally shot while sitting in his personal vehicle in a city parking lot.

  (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
16/16

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies investigate the scene off Washington Boulevard in Montebello, where a vehicle fleeing the scene of a fatal shooting in Downey was finally stopped.

  (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
By Richard Winton
 and Matt Hamilton
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At the spot where Downey Police Officer Ricardo Galvez was fatally gunned down, they gathered by the hundreds Thursday evening.

The air was quiet, reverent and mournful. The silence was pierced only by the wails of those closest to the slain officer.

“Why Ricky? Why Ricky?” cried a young woman, whom officials identified as Galvez’s sister. “Nobody knows the pain but us.”

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Close friends and relatives, lit by the glow of candles and the lights of television cameras, shared in the tears.

Helium balloons with stars and stripes marked the parking spot next to the Downey Police Department’s headquarters where 29-year-old Galvez was fatally shot on Wednesday night.

That site, formerly an ordinary corner of pavement in a civic center lot, had become a makeshift altar as candles lined the curb nearby. Galvez’s loved ones sat or crouched.

Police officers from Downey and law enforcement agencies across the region, along with residents and friends, stood by in perfect silence, carrying candles and dabbing away tears.

For breaking news in California, follow @LACrimes and @MattHjourno.

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Richard Winton

Richard Winton is an investigative crime writer for the Los Angeles Times and part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for public service in 2011. Known as @lacrimes on Twitter, during almost 30 years at The Times he also has been part of the breaking news staff that won Pulitzers in 1998, 2004 and 2016.

Matt Hamilton

Matt Hamilton is a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. He won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting with colleagues Harriet Ryan and Paul Pringle and was part of the team of reporters that won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the San Bernardino terrorist attack. A graduate of Boston College and the University of Southern California, he joined The Times in 2013.

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